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Gardening and farming in rural north Idaho has many joys and some challenges-- Zone 4 climate, plant predators/ visitors up to and including moose; sudden weather extremes (we get maritime weather off the Pacific and continental weather down from Alberta & BC). Specializing in herbs and fragrant plants led first to a keen interest in cooking with herbs, and then to soapmaking. Any one day's work might see fence fixing, pruning, soapmaking, gathering botanicals, oohing at the elk herd parading past.

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May 6, 2016

Not that EU law applies to me, as I am not on that continent nor a citizen of a European country, but the platform that ate the platform this blog is published on (Google) has dealings all over the globe, and EU regs apply to Google... so, Google have inserted, so they say, a notice about cookie collection, for legal niceties for EU viewers. Not being in the EU, I haven't seen/can't see, the notice. I hope it's not all pervasive and that you can click to dismiss it if it is.

*waves at EU viewers*

Nota bene: I, me, the writer here, collect NO cookies for informational or advertising or any other bothering-you purposes. I don't use ads to monetize the blog or track people. If I could turn off whatever cookies Google does that identify you, I would. As I can't do that, if you have concerns about privacy from the google bots, there are privacy extensions for modern browsers, and the do-not-track features, and it won't hurt my feelings any if you use them.

May 4, 2016

The Rosa primula has popped, it being so warm; the past few days have been a fragrant wonder, with the sweet dianthus-scent of these yellow flowers wafting in the open windows and greeting me when I go outside, and melding with the aroma of the Sweet Briar around the corner.

Over by the greenhouse, the lilacs are starting to open, and on the way to town today the huge lilac hedge about halfway to town announced itself about a hundred yards off.

My violets have blown, with the sudden heat, but the peonies look like they will make nicely, and unless it cools off a lot with this coming rainstorm, they will probably be open by the weekend.

This fellow was basking on the porch this afternoon when I went to water, and as soon as I saw him he pretended he was a stick.

I decided he needed a photo-op, and so here he is. When I came back from the ablutions, he was gone.

The weather is much too warm, and not only that, early-warm; it's not usually snake weather for almost another month. Garter snakes are pretty common here, though usually not snuggled up to the siding on the front porch.

April 17, 2016

So we're having the decoy weather: high-70's, low 80's, to be followed I would bet by one last hurrah for snow. Tonight the flat of rosemary pots on the front porch may stay out all night their first night; no worries the elk will climb on the porch for them (like they have done for basil) and I'm still loath to close the windows, though with various hibernators waking up out there this time of year, I think I had better. Bears in the living room = NO. Ditto skunks under open windows.

The Forsythia has been a golden dream this week, and my species tulips; the peonies are erupting and the scilla around back in the shade are in full flower. What a lovely time of year (I keep saying that, but I do get bowled over by the beauty). And the violets! I walked around a corner and the fragrance lifted me back to my childhood, lying in the long grass and sniffing the flowers, Mom's violets.

Down the hill in what is now a shade garden there are some species peonies that I may (against all my own advice) move, as they're in an area where I will be deleting the fence (yay less mowing and weeding).. it's either that or build potato-basket type cages and pin over them until September. As Market is coming up fast, that might be the answer, though I would rather be done with both tasks sooner. I have displays to re-do, a banner to get re-done, tablecloths to choose, and a thousand other details to take care of. I did find a good shipping app, and a notetaking one I can use on my rambles (so the bird pics and the recordings of birdsong don't just get lost), and I marvel at how useful that thing I call a 'phone' is. But that took too long to find and as always, I get antsy sitting at the computer paging through pages of apps. I think of how antsy my parents got with computers and now I get it.

You will too, someday :)

One of my favorite seed catalogs is doing the slow walk into retirement, and I am scuffling to make a list of the things I want one more time; funny how we get attached to people we will never meet. If I can still get them, I'll post about the catalog... wish me luck :)

April 2, 2016

(Sporadic is hardly the word for it, is it?) Paradise Gardens Rare Plant Nursery is still here, but continues to undergo changes as I deal with time constraints, running two businesses and the farm, and (sigh) aging.

This year there are roses (Primula, R. damascena, and with any luck, 'Mom's Rose'), Dianthus, some Delphiniums and sages, and a few other things as time permit. The sudden warm spell this week caught me off guard, the freshly dug plants and I are a bit stunned. So, lashings of water for them and a rest in the rose propagation area while we wait for the spring dampness to come back. I'll post detailed updates on the availability page as soon as the plants are ready to ship.

The USPS has played 52-card pickup with shipping, and once the roses are sized and weighed for shipping, there will be some new options as I have a scheme for changing the shipping boxes. Photos may follow if I am really proud of my work.

Photos will follow for certain though of the birds and creatures here; I am humbled and excited to report that the bald eagles have made a nest and appear to be setting! We were over the moon the other day to come down the hill from a ramble and see their beefy structure in a poplar near the water.

Frogs are singing every night with gusto (I had to close the windows last night as they were keeping me awake)-- as it is freezing every morning when I wake, I marvel at what their life must be like. Hmmm I should see if I can upload a recording of them to the blog.

Market starts the end of the month, this is my 18th or 19th year I think, another thing my life has been firmly entertwined with.

May 22, 2012

The shopping cart on my availability page has been glitchy... maybe it's the post office shipping estimator (they keep fiddling with things) or--sunspots? ? ;) At any rate, it was seriously underestimating shipping charges, more than I can absorb. I *think* I have a fix in place, that forces it to calculate correctly; test orders came out looking good and I hope that is the last time I have to muck with that for a long time! I'd rather be weeding than taming shopping cart code.

And I hate weeding! ;)

So, if your order's been queued, with a request for additional shipping charges, now you know why, and I am sorry for the snafu.

May 6, 2012

I have several new mints this season, and am really pleased with three of them; this variegated peppermint is a much nicer strain than the one I had years ago, with bolder coloration and a richer, deeper smell. There's almost a hint of chocolate to it; not a big surprise I suppose as that is a Mentha piperita variety as well.

The English Mint!! (Really needs the capitals and exclamation points; it's so very vivid.) This spearmint relative is bold, sweet, clean, crisp, and green. The foliage is large and bright green to match; it's my favorite mint while I am transplanting.

Mojito mint--a slight fruity undertone, subtly citrusy, and a nice minty flavor. I can see why this is the mint used in the Cuban drink, rather than something as assertive as English mint; this one works well with others instead of demanding center stage. The fruity notes make you want to come back for more. This one is also featured in a new soap this season; I may also make some mojito mint jelly... wonder how rum stands up to canning?